


ad astra per aspera

by brandnewfashion



Category: Marvel (Comics), Marvel 616
Genre: Constellations, Fluff, Happy Ending, M/M, Stargazing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-14
Updated: 2020-10-14
Packaged: 2021-03-09 04:20:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,019
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27008734
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brandnewfashion/pseuds/brandnewfashion
Summary: Steve names a star after Tony.
Relationships: Steve Rogers/Tony Stark
Comments: 5
Kudos: 56





	ad astra per aspera

**Author's Note:**

  * For [flange5](https://archiveofourown.org/users/flange5/gifts).



> This was originally posted on [my tumblr](https://brandnewfashion.tumblr.com/post/131598969963/ad-astra-per-aspera-a-rough-road-leads-to-the) over 4 years ago.

For all of the shit he’s been going through as of late, Tony actually thinks his life is going pretty well.

He’s eating and sleeping, working semi-normal hours, and—miraculously—still has time for Avenging.

It’s a Saturday—one of those extremely rare nights where he has no (pressing) obligations—and he can’t think of a better way to spend it than in his church.

Tony sheds his suit, puts on a ratty pair of jeans, and brews a fresh pot of coffee from the blend of dark roast beans that Carol had given him for Christmas.

He manages a good five minutes of quiet and solitude before _FRIDAY_ alerts him of a phone call, and Tony gulps down half of the contents in his mug before accepting it. Pepper’s voice rings through the speakers in his lab a moment later:

“So I had a conversation with Mrs. Arbogast and—” 

Tony sets his mug down on the worktable. “What happened?”

“What makes you think anything happened?”

Tony pinches the bridge of his nose. “Something always happens when the two of you conspire against me.” 

“We don’t conspire against you,” Pepper says exasperatedly.

“Suuure,” Tony says, unconvinced. “What’s up?”

“Mrs. Arbogast came to the PR meeting today and she showed me a certificate from the International Star Registry.” 

Tony’s glad that Pepper isn’t there to see him stumble and almost knock his mug off the table. “Is that so?” he asks, keeping his voice as level as possible. “What did it say?”

“It says there’s a star named after you.”

Oh. Well, that… That isn’t what Tony expected. “How are you so sure that it’s for me?”

“Given the fact that there aren’t any other _Anthony Edward Stark_ ’s born on May 29, 19—”

“Please don’t remind me of my age.”

“Okay, I won’t,” Pepper said teasingly. “Anyway, we were wondering if you know who’s behind it since you aren’t narcissistic enough to do it yourself, regardless of what the media says.”

Tony wracked his brain for possibilities, but could only reply with: “I have no clue.”

“Hm…” Tony could practically _hear_ Pepper thinking over the other line. “All right, well if you hear anything, let us know.” 

“Will do, Pep.”

~

Tony never gets the time to think about it, but that’s only because he gets distracted by a letter in the mail informing him of yet _another_ star named after him.

_The Golden Avenger_

Tony doesn’t know whether to be flattered or embarrassed by the nickname.

~

After the third star, Tony figures it out.

Sure, he’s been called _Shellhead_ by many of his teammates, but only one of those teammates has had a star named after him in a similar fashion.

Tony vividly remembers the phone call to the star registry a very long time ago; he remembers the skepticism in the operator’s voice when he had told them the name he wanted: 

_Winghead_

~

The fourth star isn’t named after him, but Tony receives the certificate of authentication in the mail.

_Amicus alter ipse_

A quick search tells Tony that the saying means “A friend is another self.”

He tells himself not to read too much into it.

~

It’s another three months before Tony gets another certificate, and if he was baffled the last time, then he has absolutely no idea what to make of this one: 

_Dicere quae puduit, scriber jussit amor_

Tony reads the translation once, twice, a _hundred_ times, and his heart doesn’t stop hammering in his chest. 

_“What I was ashamed to say, love has commanded me to write.”_

He leaves his lab, but the words remain on his computer screen for a week. 

~

The thing is: Tony isn’t sure of what exactly prompted him to name the first one.

He remembers finding Steve on the rooftop the night that the team had found him in the ice. His gaze had been fixed on the starless night sky, obviously deep in thought, but he had invited Tony to sit with him anyway.

Tony would’ve been crazy to reject an invitation from _Captain America_. 

Most wouldn’t consider light pollution and constellations to be normal conversation topics between two strangers, but for some reason, it seemed… well, fitting.

Tony had made a call to the International Star Registry shortly thereafter, but when he had the certificate in his hands for a star named after _Steven Rogers_ , he felt a little… well, unsure. After all, he had barely known the man at that point, so he wasn’t sure what kind of boundaries there were. 

…but that doesn’t stop him from naming another.

And another.

And another.

And now it’s been ten years since he’s first met Steve, two years since they’d had a proper conversation, but eleven stars still bearing variations of his name.

He’s memorized the coordinates of every single star he’s ever dedicated to him—made sure to be able to memorize their location from anywhere on a clear night.

Like their namesake, the stars are an ideal—a constant in Tony’s life, guiding him and steering him in the right direction. They’re something that Tony can aspire to be, but a status that he doesn’t believe he’ll ever be able to attain.

The stars are a brilliant white light amidst the darkness of the sky, and Tony would never want to do anything to put out that light.

He’s content to just look.

He makes a phone call, and has the certificate sent to Steve’s brownstone in Brooklyn:

_Qui amat, hercle si seurit, nullum esurit_

_(”He that’s in love, even if he is hungry, isn’t hungry at all.”)_

~

Tony isn’t surprised to find another certificate in his mailbox a few weeks later:

_Omnia vincit amor, nost et cedamus amori_

_(“Love conquers all things, let us too yield to love.”)_

He spends the better half of the night staring at the words scrawled on the piece of paper before taking out his phone and shooting a quick text. 

His first instinct is to suit up, but he thinks better of it.

After all, the mansion is only a few blocks away, and it’s a beautiful night. 


End file.
